


K-I-S-S-I-N... crap

by Malathyne



Series: elle days bits & bobs [2]
Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Amnesia, Friendship, Gen, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-29
Updated: 2017-12-29
Packaged: 2019-02-23 18:58:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13196487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Malathyne/pseuds/Malathyne
Summary: Maccready realizes his traveling partner has developed a Thing for Valentine. He doesn’t get it, and promptly sticks his foot in his mouth.(Note: SoSu is Courier-turned-SoSu, for a smidgen of context.)





	K-I-S-S-I-N... crap

At first, MacCready doesn’t think anything of it. He notices Elle’s hands linger on Nick’s arm – or shoulder, on another occasion, or hand, on a different – but, hey, that’s just how she is.  _Touchy_ , cuddly – Hell, she’s spent a lot of nights curled up at  _his_  side to hide from the winter cold, and he can’t count the number of times she’s slipped her hand into his, or rubbed her hand down his arm. She’s like that with anyone she cares about.

But then there are other signs. Her acting nervous when they’re heading to Diamond City to meet up with him – this is less obvious, but MacCready’s run with her long enough, knows her well enough, to be able to see it. She fusses with her Pip-Boy more when she’s anxious, straightens her gloves, holds her hands together fingers laced and rubs her pinkies together… Stuff like that. And Nick can get her to go  _shy_  in a way MacCready isn’t used to seeing, like, she gets downright  _bashful_  and it’s weird. He knows she gets uncomfortable when she gets more praise or attention for something than she was expecting, and whenever he says something especially sappy, she goes all soft and embarrassed. But Valentine? Valentine has her stumbling over her words, draws out this  _look_  from her like she’s hoping he’ll pat her on the head and tell her she’s a good girl.

The Elle MacCready knows may change her mind mid-sentence about how she’s going to phrase something, but she’s usually so sure-footed about what she says, and she doesn’t look to other people for support on her decisions. She may ask for input about tactics or insights, but she knows what she wants to do and she gets shi – She gets business taken care of. She never asks for help deciding what the best thing to do is, but with Nick? MacCready’s overheard her asking him what the  _right_  thing to do would be.

It’s  _weird_. And the last straw is when he catches her watching Valentine’s retreating back with wistful doe eyes –  _Her_ , the woman who walked into Fort Hagen and faced down her brother’s murderer with no fear, no anger, who didn’t flinch away from the rare couple of times he told her some of his Gunner stories.

MacCready stands beside her for a couple of seconds before clearing his throat. “Soooo… You  _know_  he’s, like, a robot, right? How’s  _that_  supposed to work?”

Elle finally tears her gaze away from Nick and stares at him instead. There’s a funny little confused furrow between her eyebrows, but she doesn’t answer him straightaway. “Uh… What…?”

“Come on. If we were back in D.C., I know people who’d be singing about you and Valentine sitting in a tree.”

This time, she doesn’t answer him at all. She keeps on staring at him, blankly this time.

“Seriously? You don’t know that one? What kind of childhoo…” The word dies in MacCready’s mouth and his eyes unbidden jump to the bullet scars on her forehead.  _Amnesia_. She  _wouldn’t_  remember stuff like that.

 _Now_  he just feels awkward, and a little bit like a jerk. He rubs the back of his neck. “Uh… You know what, forget it. Are we getting a move on or what?”


End file.
